The contracts are in the second year of a three-year deal that expires March 31, 2014, and had a provision that allowed for the issue of wages to be discussed this year, said Bill Margalis, county director of administrative services. All other terms remained the same and were non-negotiable in the contract's second year.

Now that the wage reopener agreements have been completed, negotiations will proceed on new three-year contracts that would take effect when the current agreements expire, Commissioner Daniel P. Troy said.

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Commissioners said 2.5 percent pay increases were added to salary line items for departments and elected offices that receive funding this year from the county's general fund, and commissioners asked each to continue to be frugal when it comes to hiring employees.

Sheriff Daniel A. Dunlap said he understands the county's budget situation and he and his staff have worked with the commissioners when it comes to employees and contracts.

"We went to the employees who had taken furlough days for four years and a lot of them hadn't had raises for four years," Dunlap said.

"I think they've come to understand it's still a fragile economy that the 2.5 percent is an adequate pay raise."

The sheriff said if that wasn't the case, then there wouldn't have been such a consensus from the eight bargaining units.

"They all agreed to it and I guess a lot of us feel lucky to have jobs," Dunlap said.

The sheriff has been able to recall some of staff who had been laid off when previous budget cuts to his office forced reductions.

"We had laid off about 50 people, we're still 40 people short of what we like to call our high water mark," Dunlap said. "So we're trying to do the job the best we can with the labor force we have."